35 replies to this topic

[yel327]

Just thought I'd share this if anyone is interested.

 

I've had this HJ Premier now over 10 years. She's only done 108,000kM, and was at 99,000kM in 1999. WHen the owner had a stroke his wife sent it and his car trailer to the auctions where it eventually ended up at Wakefield Wreckers. I recognised the car from when it was new as it lived all its life within 100m of where I grew up. So I bought it.

 

Its a very original car, but the owner had at some stage in the late 80's fitted a 650 vacuum secondary Holley and Scorcher dizzy with a big coil. You can see the two holes in the final photos of where the coil was mounted on the firewall, and that wire taped up with pink tape is the +12V feed to the aftermarket coil. Over the years the vacuum operated heater tap had corroded and it was disconnected. It has a weeping head gasket and the guys at the wreckers pulled the heads, and changed the gaskets. They also removed the aftermarket dizzy and coil and re-fitted a HT-HJ 253 dizzy. Its original master cyl was leaking so they took that off, and when I bought it I fitted a good used one that was on a HQ in the yard and bled the brakes. That is still on it now, you can see it in the photos.

 

It is pretty much stock apart from the above, other than the tyres and the lower ball joints. It does have aftermarket coils and shocks on it. I have the original shocks off an identical car being rebuilt at the moment which will go back in but I'll leave the Selby springs in it.

 

Since I've had it I took the TH400 out and replaced the rear welsh plugs, fitted all new seals to the box and fitted a rebuilt converter with a few extra hundred rpm stall as the 2.78 rear axle bogs it down a lot. I've also had the radiator cleaned and flushed, fitted a new water pump whilst the radiator was out and fitted a filter into the top radiator hose.

 

I started it a few weeks ago to get it ready to move for a parking hoist to go in, and it was really running like a pig. Heaps of carbon mixed with condensation blowing out the tailpipe. So I bit the bullet and did a top end rebuild.

 

Starting point:

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Once the Holley was off I had to remove the studs at the front as a Quadrajet uses 2 x bolts in that spot. Carby off:

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Choke operator location. Left hand hole had a lead shot ball jammed into it to block the vacuum source.

 Choke Operator location.JPG   269.46K   5 downloads

 

Luckily I have a shed full of stuff, pulled a choke operator off a spare HJ/LH intake and gave it a birthday.

 Refurbed choke operator.JPG   108.53K   4 downloads

 

Had to run a tap up the attachment threaded hole as whomever did it use the right size bolt but wrong TPI:

 Tapping the thread.JPG   210.56K   4 downloads

 

Choke operator mounted. You can see the lead ball on the carb mounting face.

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Repro stainless choke operation pipes. RH one in the first image is the original source pipe. The old heat pipe was damaged as it was bent to connect to the Holley and it broke.

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[yel327]

 Choke pipes in place.JPG   204.51K   4 downloads

 

Refurbed 9/73 to 12/74 308/5.0L auto carby.

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 Refurbed carby 2.JPG   173.77K   4 downloads

 

In and running.

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It is idling beautifully, no more black crap out the exhaust. Still running a bit rough mid throttle and missing. So I bought and el-cheapo HEI dizzy and coil from Spark Plugs direct, plus some NGK BPR5FS-11 plugs for it. This dizzy below, only $195. Good enough for now:

https://www.ebay.com...dffee619d|iid:1

 

Dr Terry is rebuilding a VK HEI dizzy and original 1974 dated master cylinder for me.

 

I have all original hose clamps and a set of mid 1974 dated brand new Packard leads for it, plus all the original lead separators.

 

Had to buy a repro PCV hose as the original had been cut for the Holley as the Holley had a rear barb, Quadrajet is at the front with the PCV at the rear LH side. Luckily in the waist high pile of 308/5.0 air cleaners I had one 9/73 to 12/74 Holden air cleaner. It was the only one. Rest are off other stuff.

 

Next will be getting the heater connected again, I lucked a pair of NOS vacuum heater taps at a swap meet a few years ago, these are unobtanium. They go for over $1000 each to HQ GTS350 owners. As I have two I'll use one and have a spare, you can see the original in front of the air cleaner.

 

So once the hoist is in I'll drain the radiator out again and replace the older hoses if they need it, and get it all connected right again with the original clamps. Just have to find the inlet manifold bolt on spout gasket as I don;t have any of them.

 

Then lastly get the RH side exhaust pipe support added behind the rear seat and fit the NOS and repro combo dual system to it

[Zook]

Got some photos of the car itself?

[yel327]

Yes, will put a few up.

 

I almost forgot. That pink taped up wire on the firewall. It was a green wire run straight from the back of the fuse box. It must have been used for the aftermarket coil. I bumped it the other day and it shorted to the TH400 dipstick. Geez that green wire had some smoke in it! Massive amounts pouring out from under the bonnet and inside the car. I jumped out and ripped to 0V terminal off the battery. When the smoke cleared it was all runny green insulation and bare copper. I pulled it out today, found it under the dash where it had sort of attached itself to the outer plastic of the main harness but didn't melt it. It ran along the firewall under the brown insulation and through that grommet in the firewall you can see. Lucky save!

[yel327]

Here is a few. Retail ordered in September 1974. Complianced December 1974. Delivered February 1975.

 

Options ticked:

 

L31

G80 (LSD).

M11 console shift.

GroupIII metallic (Sepia).

U17 sports dash.

PC1 6" wheels.

Power windows.

C60 Integrated A/C.

Heated rear window.

Power antenna.

 

He didn't option dual exhaust or cloth trim. Sunshine roof, PE1 14x7 rims and CD4 (intermittent wipers) not available until 1975.

 

 

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[Ice]

Looks awesome being a Premier you would think it would have passenger side mirror 

[yel327]

That was optional when it was complianced. I think they partially built and complianced a heap of cars in December 1974 as a heap of ADR’s came into force in January 1975. Charcoal canister for one, which meant a sealed fuel tank, vapour line, canister, extra hoses, different carb, different air cleaner, relocated PCV with different hoses, different vacuum advance hoses for auto and manual. Plus a few more. Commercials got retractable seat belts standard. Lots more too.

[Zook]

Very nice! Thank goodness it already had 'V8' so that you didn't have to modify it!

[Ice]

 Never understood why the fuse covers used to fade on these models they didn’t even see sunlight 

[yel327]

Very nice! Thank goodness it already had 'V8' so that you didn't have to modify it!

If it was as good as it is I’d still have bought it but probably for half what I paid for it. Unlikely to have found one so loaded with a 6 though, imagine how gutless a 120hp 3.3 would be with auto,, air and steer driving a 1400kg car through a 3.36 rear axle. Those GM A/C’s took about 10% of that to operate them. If that were the case though I’d have already scrapped the driveline and put an injected 5.0L and 4L60 into it.

Never understood why the fuse covers used to fade on these models they didn’t even see sunlight

Different suppliers, different plastics.

[claysummers]

Mate had one, formerly owned by a pastoralist. 308 t350. Took for a drive Leigh creek, blinman, mt chambers gorge, 1995. Driving through creek beds etc. rear housing broke axle tube between centre and spring saddle 50km dirt out of blinman. Turned around and drove with the axle supporting the weight and rubbing on the housing, until it collapsed 25km short.


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[yel327]

Must have been a HZ to be a TH350 if it was original. They are pretty decent cars and were OK everyday drivers when they were younger. But they’ll never match a proper Aussie Holden for toughness, those final run of the traditional Aussie designed Holden ie HD to HG were tough as an old boot.

[Ice]

Those sill trims were the worst thing GMH ever put on Holdens for rust

[claysummers]

Was a HJ prolly even had strip speedo. Could be wrong n the trans but then wouldn’t surprise me if it wasn’t original. Went back next day with tractor, picked up the rear with bucket and pushed it to blinman. Put another diff under it away we went.


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[yel327]

Yes Gene. And the best way to cover up dodgy, rusty sills on utes and tonners! Can’t tell you how many beautiful rust free sedans, wagons, Statesmans and even coupes and Sandman vans I saw get wrecked out and the whole lot get put through a bogged up tonner shell with welded up cracks around the front suspension mounts. Then the donor shell complete with everything intact behind the front seats go to scrap. Crying shame, but wreckers were full of good back doors and boot lids and no-one used to want rust free sedan or wagon or Statesman quarters. I did rescue a couple of mint shells from these operations and cut them up for donor floors, plenums etc when I had a wreckers licence but there was no demand for it, you’d spend 2-3 hours unpicking entire panel ready to weld back in along spotweld joints but almost couldn’t give them away as rough as guts weld in Rare Spares sections were so cheap. Today you’d make a killing out of it.

Was a HJ prolly even had strip speedo. Could be wrong n the trans but then wouldn’t surprise me if it wasn’t original. Went back next day with tractor, picked up the rear with bucket and pushed it to blinman. Put another diff under it away we went.


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Might have been a TH400. The only HJ to get a TH350 originally were South African assembled ones with a 250HO engine.

Edited by yel327, 15 June 2021 - 10:05 PM.

[claysummers]

Yes prolly t400 then.


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[Redslur]

I so love the H series V8 Holdens. Had quite a few of them and currently enjoying my HQ :-). Be worth a pretty dollar in the condition mate....

[yel327]

I love H series too, but to me that is technically HD to HG. HQ to WB are essentially W series although HQ doesn’t really know what it is as they don’t get W model codes until HJ! Bit like LH-LX being U series but only the 4cyl ones get U model codes until UC.

It’s a good car, I’ll probably eventually sell it as I never use it. Survivor cars are a curse to own in some ways. HJ are the best of all of the 308 powered cars in the W size by far as they got the 250hp engine. Same with LH from about 9/74 through to LX about 5/76, prior to that it was 227hp and afterwards 216hp. Although like the HJ those Toranas didn’t get the good suspension geometry. Not too many of any of them left with stock engines and suspension though.

[308 Sunbird]

That's a beautiful car Yel, glad to see a Quady back on it and Packard leads will look great.

[73SUNBURSTEXYOUWON]

Those sill trims were the worst thing GMH ever put on Holdens for rust

Yeah,
Look good though...my sills are rustproofed inside n out under the trims.

Attached Files

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[yel327]

That's a beautiful car Yel, glad to see a Quady back on it and Packard leads will look great.

I’ll probably end up upsetting some late HQ and early HJ GTS owners plus some LH SLR5000 owners by using a set of mid 1974 Packard leads on it! I’m still undecided on what to do with it. I’m putting a parking hoist in where it parks do I can store it out of the way as I need to move my Bobcat out of the shed as where it currently is, is the only spot I can fit my Ram1500 which will be delivered late this year. Plus one of my HK donor coupes needs a spot to go, currently stored out west. Bobcat might end up under an awning.

[yel327]

Yeah,
Look good though...my sills are rustproofed inside n out under the trims.

Old Prems are cool. They were the top spec and luxury Holden (alongside HQ and HJ LS) from EJ release through until the last one sold in 1980. Eventually replaced by SL/E and later Calais. I don’t think they’ve ever really been appreciated by most as to what they are. To the uneducated they are “just a Kingswood” and people also think that the GTS was the top spec, but it was really the sports version (especially in HQ to HZ) where the Premier was the luxury version. People also get caught up about Brougham, Statesman, Deville and Caprice. However these were really the equivalent of the Impala and Parisienne sold as the next vehicle line up from the Holden. The Brougham muddies all that though as it doesn’t know what it is, sort of straddles both the Holden and LWB luxury GMH vehicle.

[Shiney005]

That interior is beautiful. The red on the rocker covers would drive me bonkers though.

[Ddstoys]

Nice work on the top end that cars gorgeous and well worth the attention to detail


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[yel327]

The wreckers painted it like that when they did the head gaskets. I have a few more here, undecided whether to put an original set on that look the same age as the air cleaner or paint some up.